Fins, Femmes, and Gems:Revisited
by ideasofmany
Summary: This story revisits the Xena episode "Fins, Femmes, & Gems". There was a rumor that the original script called for Gabrielle's obsession to be Xena instead of Gabrielle being obsessed with herself. This is my attempt to flesh it out.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Xena, if I did, it would have jumped the shark way too early. :P

**Summary:** This story revisits the Xena episode "Finns, Femmes, and Gems". There was a rumor that the original script called for Gabrielle's obsession to be Xena instead of Gabrielle being obsessed with herself. Some humor will be involved.

**Warning:** There will be content of sexual nature.

**Subtext:** Of Course!

Chapter 1: Aphrodite's Curses

Angered at the mortals' statements in her temple Aphrodite determined a fun way to deter them from retrieving the Mystic Diamond. She pulled out her perfume creation called "Obsession" and treated the mortals to a few puffs. The perfume would make them obsessed with whatever they were looking at, at the time of the puff. As a result Xena now had a double obsession for fishing. Joxer was now obsessed with being Attus, the ape man. Gabrielle, who looked at Xena at the time, had a healthy obsession for Xena.

Xena had a sudden urge to go fishing. All she could think about was fish!fish!fish! Fish of all sizes, colors, slickness. She wanted to catch them, eat them, and touch them.

Succeeding to push those thoughts aside, for the task at hand, Xena announced,"Gabrielle, Joxer! That diamond needs to get back in the sky, if not, it could lead to many travel disasters!"

She rushed out of Aphrodite's temple and insisted her companions follow suit.

"First things first, we need to fish! Meet me at the lake one hundred cubits from here." Xena threw her chakram far away, against a rock on a mountain top. The rock was pushed off its tight fit and went rolling down the mountainside. It caused a rock slide of epic proportions that would block the warlord with the diamond when he ran into it.

Joxer, upon seeing foreign materials upon his frame, began to pull and tear at the clothing on his body. Not knowing what a button or what clothes were, he was puzzled by its tenacity to stay on his body. He growled loudly while resorting to ripping as much off his body as possible and disappearing into the forest.

Gabrielle, who looked in the direction of where Joxer had burst into the forest, stated, "I think something is wrong. You two are acting very strange." Gabrielle said as she turned to face Xena.

Now that she was facing Xena, Gabrielle's vision blurred. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. In her view was the most amazing creature she had ever lay her eyes upon. Observing Xena from her head to her toes, Gabrielle was in complete awe.

"Dear Gods, I must be in heaven, why did I never realize" she muttered. Xena who was rushing quickly towards the lake, noticed Gabrielle lagging.

"Come on Gabrielle! We have no time to waste!" Xena yelled behind her.

"She spoke to me!," Gabrielle exclaimed and skipped and hopped to obey.

As Xena was adjusting her flying parchment, Gabrielle sat behind her taking in the view of Xena's finer rear features.

Gabrielle sighed in contentment and said, "isn't it beautiful? All the dimples and curves?"

Bothered by the strange descriptions of her flying parchment, Xena remarked, "It's not supposed to dimple or curve, I need it to stay still up there. Do me a favor and tug on that line, the clip is supposed to release when it's tugged."

Gabrielle who was still watching Xena's 'finer points' responded, "No thanks! I'm quite busy." as she drooled at her mouth watering subject.

Xena realized something was wrong. The way her friend was leering and undressing her with her eyes was not quite right. She decided to use it to her advantage.

She batted her eyelashes and said,"Oh Gabrielle! Be a sweetie and grab that line!"

Xena cajoled while puffing her chest and bending over, revealing a tantalizing view of cleavage to Gabrielle.

"Yes Ma'am," Gabrielle responded while jumping up and grabbing the line. The parchment came flopping down on top of them.

"Needs adjustments." Xena grumbled.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Cooling Off**

Gabrielle stared in disgust as Joxer foraged for bugs.

"Joxer is acting strange. Ugh! Why does he have to be around us, if only we were alone, Oh- the things we could do!" Gabrielle sighed.

"He's been acting strange since we left the temple. I think Aphrodite put a spell on him and now he thinks he's that ape man. You know, you've got the obsession spell too." Xena responded.

"That's funny I don't feel any different." Gabrielle answered.

"What am I obsessed with?" she asked, in confusion.

"The only thing I can't get my mind off of is how amazing you are." Gabrielle pervertedly leered as she stated this. Xena rolled her eyes at Gabrielle's advances.

"Well, if we're all obsessed with something, what are you obsessed with?" Gabrielle tested.

"Oh I'm good, I'm the only one not affected. I know what needs to get done. So let's get back to fishing. Joxer! Get me some of those bugs, I'll use it for bait." Xena ordered.

Joxer grunted his acceptance and rushed off to find more bugs. Grabbing her parchment and Gabrielle, they headed towards the lake. While walking Gabrielle was constantly laying down strips of scroll at Xena's feet as to ensure that her beautiful feet would not touch anything.

"Gabrielle! Would you stop that!" Xena snapped. Eager to please, Gabrielle shrugged and made use of the scroll in a different manner. She began jotting a song about her beloved Xena while singing along.

"**Who is the most beauteous creature of them all, **

**her body is really sexy and she is really tall,**

**like a sinuous feral feline out for a hunt,**

**sending shivers up my spine, aches in my ….mmphff"**

"Are you out of your mind!" Xena yelled as she covered the blond's mouth before any more of the horrible lyrics could be revealed.

"What's wrong Xena? I think you are amazing, and I want the world to know!" Gabrielle said.

"You are going to scare all the fish!" Xena sulked.

"Those fish better stay away from you, if they know what's good for them!" Gabrielle grumbled in a sinister manner. Finally they reached the lake.

"It's just like I remember!" Xena said in relief.

"This is the ultimate fantasy!" she said referring to lake and fishing conditions.

"You sure are." Gabrielle grinned lecherously.

"This is gonna be great! Come on Gabrielle, it's time to get wet! Get your gear off!" Xena shouted.

"Way ahead of you. You don't know how long I've waited to hear you say that!"

Gabrielle shouted back. "Oh my gods, did I just say that? I can't believe I just said that. Am I obsessed with sex? I need to calm down" Gabrielle whispered.

"Gabrielle come here, I gotta show you something!" Xena yelled across the lake.

The blond turned to see her favorite warrior with fish attached to her wrists.

"You just wiggle your finger to look like a worm, and then 'Wham!'" the warrior chortled.

"Um, you want me to finger and fist a fish?" Gabrielle started to sweat from the conception of imagery the words gave her. She did the first thing that came to mind, she jumped into the lake to cool herself down. While she was down there holding her breath, her obsession took over and she plotted an ingenious plan.

"I'm going to go clean and prep these for eating. You go ahead and have a try Gabrielle." Xena said, heading for shore.

"Gabrielle... Gabrielle, Gabrielle! Where are you?" Xena screamed after not getting a response. A pair of bubbles bubbled up in the area of the lake that she had just seen Gabrielle standing by. This caused her to panic. She darted back to the lake and dove in for Gabrielle, finding her limp and unresponsive. She decided to try to get her breathing working by forcing some air into her. She bent over and put her lips to the bard's. When she breathed in, she was shocked to find herself being pulled into a big wet kiss.

"Gabrielle! What in the world do you think you were doing! More importantly, did you see any fish down there?" Xena said exasperated.

"Xena, you pulled me up, and I looked into your eyes, and Xena, I finally realized- there can only be one person for me in my life. It's you!" Gabrielle revealed. Xena not amused by the stunt, attributed Gabrielle's admission to Aphrodite's spell.

*****Authors Note: I have no idea where I'm going with this story, Gods help us all! I apologize for the horrible song XD*****


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Carried Away**

Xena had rescued Gabrielle from the depths of the murky water and was angered to find that the fish she had left on shore were put back into the lake.

"Joxer you fool, if you do that again I'll jam my fist down your throat and have you for a meal!" she threatened.

Gabrielle was still in a bit of a daze from her sneaky kiss. Gabrielle sighed in rapt attention, "She's beautiful when she's angry isn't she? Joxer, I think something might be wrong with Xena. All she wants to do is fish, I've never seen her so focused on fishing..." Gabrielle trailed off as Joxer was looking at her strangely.

The whole time the blond was talking, the dialogue was a lot different from what she was actually saying to him. In fact in his mind, she was his ape princess and she had just said that she liked him. In his mind, she was propositioning him for a little 'zugg zugg'.

"You see Joxer, I think you and Xena are under a spell from Aphrodite. I should talk to her. I should ask her what to do, she has superior intelligence and the best judgement on what to do in times such as these." Gabrielle stood up and headed towards Xena.

Xena at the moment was having a flashback of the last time she was at the lake fishing for a whopper of a fish called Solaris. She had fond memories of Lyceus as she remembered that day and the bite on her fishing line.

"Xena I have something really important that I need to talk to you about." Gabrielle started. The obsession took control. Gabrielle slunk until she was so close, Xena could feel her breath on her neck. Gabrielle sidled closer and and whispered ever so close to Xena's neck and ears. The small hairs on Xena's neck tickled and sent a chill down her spine. The warrior's breath caught as her ears interpreted the whisper.

"Xena, there is just something about you. I can't get you off my mind." Xena who was desperate to halt the tingles that were threatening to take over her body, found an escape route. Xena hugged her to her and tugged Gabrielle's hair and promptly cut a lock off with the knife in her boot.

"Xena did you just cut off my hair?" Gabrielle said, momentarily shocked out of her obsession.

"Yeah, I'm going to use it to trick Solaris." Xena stated matter of factly.

"Who's Solaris?" Gabrielle asked demandingly.

"A fish that Lyceus and I discovered when we were kids. He's wily, he's smart, he's cunning, he's a great opponent. Every time that Lyceus or I would catch him, he would find a way to escape. But this time- no." The blond pulled at Xena's hair and cut off a lock and tucked it into her cleavage.

Xena did not notice and continued talking, "I'm sure Solaris will go for it. We can't have line drag. That's why, when we attack, we do it from the air."

Gabrielle then suggested a different method of capture, "Why don't I round up some villagers to help. More helping hands gives us more chances."

The dark haired woman yelled, "No one catches Solaris but ME!"

A few minutes later Gabrielle felt something urging for attention in the back of her mind.

"Hmm, do you ever feel like we're forgetting something important?" Gabrielle said in wonder.

"It's the diamond, your obsession thing is preventing you from remembering important things." Xena clarified.

"My obsession?" the blond wondered.

"Don't forget we have only a limited time to get the Mystic Diamond back. So we'll get back to retrieving it after I catch Solaris." Xena replied.

Xena had her flying parchment in the air and was ready to test it once again. She yelled for Gabrielle give it a tug, and the clip worked just as designed. Unfortunately for the blond, the release resulted in her falling into the water again. Coming out of the water, she was livid.

"That's it! I know what is going on here! Fishing! Solaris? Right..Now I understand what's going on here. You are trying to get rid of me so you can cheat on me with some floozy! Or worse yet, forsake our love and your reform to go do the bidding of a long dead girlfriend!" Gabrielle yelled.

Xena crinkled her eyebrows in absolute astonishment of how far gone the blond was.

"That's ridiculous!" Xena answered and took a mental note about Gabrielle's resentment of Lao Ma. She knew she would have to address it when Gabrielle no longer was under a spell.

Meanwhile, the warlord and his lackeys soon ran into the avalanche of rocks Xena had caused with her chakram.

"This wasn't here before." Mecanus noted. He walked around in survey of the avalanche and determined there would be no way around it.

"We're blocked, we'll have to detour up around the lake," he directed. They turned and headed towards the lake. The avalanche had worked just as Xena had planned.

**Author's Note: Not sure I'm handling Gabrielle's obsession to Xena the way I should. I think it's leaning toward delusional girlfriend at the moment XD. I'm open to suggestions. **

**Edit: modified Gabrielle's accusation to be more deep seated in Xena's love past, Thanks for the suggestion/idea, Silvermoonlight_GJ :)**

**Edit: Thanks to xgce for catching the Chapter Title error**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: The Pink Nightie**

From the treetops Joxer,(aka Attus the ape man) was watching Gabrielle(aka princess Gaea). He saw that Gaea was having an argument with the dark haired ape woman (aka Xena).

"Attus rescue Gaea from dark ape! Attus make Gaea Attus bride!" At this decision, he grabbed hold of a vine and swung down, straight for Gabrielle. He swooped her up and brought her to the forest tree tops.

Xena, who was relieved by the avoidance of the psychotic argument, sighed in relief, "Finally some peace and quiet!"

On the treetops, Gabrielle was irate that her tirade had been interrupted.

"Are you crazy!" she yelled in anger.

"Gaea like Attus?" Joxer questioned while stretching and revealing his full ape form, including little Joxer.

"Attus pleasure you with furious zugg zugg," he grunted. Gabrielle's eyes bulged in their sockets as she quickly looked away.

"Attus is quite a surprise." she stated while shading her eyes from seeing any further. She suddenly had an idea and reached into her bag to retrieve a pink nightie. Aphrodite had given it to her as a gesture of apology for the time she had enchanted her scrolls. Gabrielle kept it out of fear of insulting her and this would be the first time someone would use it, since she was too embarrassed to wear it in front of Xena.

"Put that on quick Joxer!" she rushed.

Xena's flying parchment fell out of the air from lack of a breeze. Xena then realized she needed a second person to get it back in the air.

"So much for quiet. Gabrielle? Monkey-man, you bring her back! You know, you two are beginning to irritate me with these obsessions of yours! Fish don't just catch themselves!" she screamed in the general vicinity of where she'd seen them head. Muttering, she began her walk into the forest to retrieve Gabrielle.

In the trees, Joxer was getting too amorous for Gabrielle's liking.

"Attus, Unhand me you beast! The only hands I want on me are Xena's!" she scolded.

"Bride want food?" Attus asked.

"No, I'm fine I had a late breakfast." the blond answered.

"Now we make furious zugg zugg!" Joxer growled.

"Wait, no, I could do with some breakfast!" she hurriedly stated. Then she heard Xena's voice yelling for her, asking where she was.

"Thank goodness she came for me, I can't live without her for a minute." she stated.

"Attus make escape and bring you to raging river, where for three moons, we make furious zugg zugg." Joxer announced.

"No! Xena is the only one I want to make furious 'zugg zugg' with. You..you..you APE!" she yelled.

He started to swing away and invoked the help of all the forest animals to slow down the dark ape, Xena, from finding them. All he got in response was crickets chirping.

"You ungrateful animals!" he yelled. At that very moment Xena, swinging from her own vine, swung past Joxer and pulled Gabrielle from his clutches. Joxer who was still in shock, neglected to notice the tree in front of him, which he promptly crashed into and fell to the forest floor.

"Xena! You saved me!" Gabrielle gushed as she commenced to take advantage of their close proximity by fondling any part of Xena that she get a hold of.

"Gabrielle! What are you doing!" Xena blushed in embarrassment and shock.

"I'm just committing every part of your body into memory through sensory observation." the blond smirked.

Much to Xena's relief they landed on the ground which ended the blond's close examination.

"Gabrielle, remember that diamond we talked about?" Xena questioned.

"Yes I remember the 'diamond' that you claim we need to find." Gabrielle baited in suspicion.

'Great she's still in the suspicious frame of mind, maybe I can convince her it's something to benefit the both of us,' Xena thought to herself. Quickly she thought up a scheme that would more than likely turn off Gabrielle's adultery suspicion.

"Gabrielle, it's the diamond I was hoping you would propose marriage to me with, so that we can get married and I can be yours, and only yours forever and ever." Xena exaggerated.

She felt bad that she was taking advantage of Gabrielle in this state, but she really needed to catch Solaris.

"You mean it? In that case, point me in the direction of that diamond!" Gabrielle enthusiastically instructed.

"Maecanus should be passing by this lake, soon. Uh maybe, you..." Xena started, but noticed that Gabrielle already left to meet Maecanus head on.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Diamond Retrieval**

In the tree branches of a large tree, Gabrielle sat in wait.

'Those ruthless fiends, how dare they keep me and my Xena from wedded bliss,' she thought and snarled in anger.

"Yodelay-he-hoo!" she yelled as a battle cry. She dropped from the tree branches and fell on top of the warlord and his thugs.

This successfully knocked the diamond in its pouch out of the warlords hands. Gabrielle quickly snatched it up and pulled out Xena's breast dagger that she had acquired while fondling Xena's assets. She had intended the dagger to be used as a deterrent in the event that any suitors of Xena's would appear. She stabbed and sliced the air in demonstration of the damage she would inflict on the thugs. The thugs, now recovered, returned to their feet. Suddenly, she realized, not only did she not have any knife skills, but she was outnumbered three to one.

"Give us the diamond!" Maecanus demanded. Gabrielle took off in a sprint back to Xena at the lake.

"Joxer! Attus! Come here!" Xena ordered.

Still humbled by his defeat in the forest, Attus submitted to the dark haired ape.

"You want the princess?" she asked.

"Attus want." Joxer replied.

"You need the princess?" she asked in follow up.

"Attus need!" Joxer answered.

She told him where he could find her and when he left, Xena continued her hunt for Solaris. Joxer swung on his vine in the direction of where Xena had indicated and found Gabrielle being cornered by the thugs. Once again he swooped down and whisked Gabrielle off into the forest. The thugs followed in pursuit.

Gabrielle and Joxer had stopped swinging and landed on a branch.

"Joxer! You saved me!" she graciously thanked him.

"Now time for zugg zugg!" he grunted. At that precise moment an arrow from one of the thugs crossbows embedded itself in the tree trunk a few inches away from Joxer.

"Joxer swing! El Swingo!" she screamed as she indicated the thugs below them reaching closer.

"Attus not afraid! Attus king of the jungle!" Joxer replied. Another arrow zinged past and grazed him on the ear.

"Ow! Attus renounce thrown!" he whined and he pulled Gabrielle close and swung off the tree branch and onto the ground.

Gabrielle ran towards where Xena was, as soon as they hit the ground.

"Xena! I got it! Catch!" she yelled as she tossed the pouch at Xena.

As Xena caught the pouch she saw a glistening glimpse of Solaris take a bite of her lure. All she had to do was hold on to the line in her other hand and reel him in. Unfortunately the thugs showed up.

"Leave the diamond, little girl. Don't make me kill you." Maecanus threatened.

"You must be new around here." Xena responded.

Maecanus came straight at her to grab the diamond away. She quickly dispatched of him by using his momentum against him. She avoided his grab with a side step and she reverse kicked Maecanus in the face. He fell into the lake with a splash. The other two followed suit. She soon grabbed both the hair on their heads and busted their heads into each other. They fell unconscious to the ground. As she was walking away, Maecanus was out of the water and coming up quickly behind her. Xena promptly executed a back flip, resulting in her ending up complete behind him. She tied the line holding Solaris onto the warlords armor, which dragged him, face first, in the sand and violently into a nearby tree. He was now down for the count. The line slowly slacked and the knot, which was tied very loosely, was undone. Solaris soon had the slack it needed to dislodge the hook from his mouth.

"Solaris! Nooo!" Xena exclaimed.

"He got away didn't he?" Gabrielle said as she patted Xena on the shoulder soothingly.

"Yeah, everything worked beautifully except.." Xena paused. An idea started forming in her head.

"This diamond is beautiful." Xena commented.

"He still got away. You know, now that we have the diamond..." Gabrielle began while softly falling to one knee.

"Xena...um... of Amphipolis. You've made my life worth living for, and I can't live without you. Xena, will you marry me?" Gabrielle begged.

Xena's eyes went round and she froze in the spot where she stood. Gabrielle looked up with an innocent hope in her eyes.

Despite her love for Gabrielle, Xena responded with a, "No." "But, but, I thought you said.." the blond trailed off and her face and body showed signs of dejection.

Her appearance sent Xena into a self loathing spiral.

"You see Gabrielle, the truth is, I need to get that diamond back into the sky so that travelers can find their way home. Do you understand how important that is?" Xena explained.

"So you don't want to marry me?" Gabrielle sulked.

"No, I mean, Yes.. I mean technically..." Xena's trailed off due to a lack of words and nervousness.

TO BE CONTINUED

****Author's note: Story is nearing its end, isn't everyone glad? lol. I think I've bastardized this episode enough XD****


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Can't take it back**

"It's not that I don't want to marry you. If we don't get this diamond back in the sky, many people will have a hard time finding their way home." Xena responded.

Gabrielle was appeased with the answer and responded, "Okay Xena you can have the diamond, but since you said its not that you don't want to marry me..we can still have a wedding!" she clapped her hands in happiness over her clever conclusion.

Xena cringed in realization that she was between a rock in a hard place. She sighed in resignation and set about to catching Solaris. "First things first, I have to catch Solaris." Xena stated and headed into the forest to get some materials.

When she returned she headed to the pier. At the end of the pier Xena rigged two strong flexible tree trunks. She connected the trunks with a very rubbery vine. She stretched the vine as far as it could go and tied it with a rope to a stake on the lake shore. Where the rope and the vine met, the diamond hung from a string. It was basically similar to a huge, make-shift slingshot. The diamond dangled precariously above the water just waiting to be tugged.

"Okay, its all set. Now we just sit back and relax." Xena whispered.

The three settled and commenced sitting by the pier. In a matter of a few minutes, Solaris made his appearance. Like a moth to a flame, the fish leaped into the air and chomped onto the diamond. Xena rushed to the rope holding the vine and sliced through it with her sword with a wild look in her eyes. The cut of the rope released the taut vine and sent Solaris and the diamond flying into the sky until they couldn't see it anymore.

"I think you just put a fish in the heavens." Gabrielle stated and looked on in awe.

"I dedicate this fish to Lyceus." Xena announced happily. At the end of her sentence Xena doubled over as if in pain but recovered quickly.

"Are you okay?" Gabrielle asked.

"Gabrielle, I just realized what it was that was driving my obsession. It's not fishing! It- it's all the unresolved business between me and my brother. I felt like I still owed him something. The minute I acknowledged it, I was out from under its spell." Xena began.

"Gabrielle, think! There is something about yourself that you're not satisfied with." Xena added.

"I don't know what you are talking about. That obsession thing ran out a while ago. Now let's start heading to a town so we can get married." Gabrielle revealed.

Xena was in utter shock. She wondered what it was that had released Gabrielle from the obsession. Not only that, but why she was still pursuing this whole marriage idea. Xena's brain was on overdrive.

Her eyebrows bunched and crooked as she looked to the heavens trying to figure out, "What in the gods be damned known world is going on!" Xena interjected.

**Author's Note: Almost completed, I will post the final chapters soon. Changed my format a bit for testing. Hopefully it makes it more readable. If not, let me know and I will post the next chapter in paragraphs. Thanks for all the kind reviews.-ideasofmany**

**ETA: fixed the error of Xena responding despite being the last to speak, pointed out by Demented Noodles. Thanks again! :D


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Gone Bananas

Gabrielle who felt slightly guilty for keeping Xena out of the loop, decided to let Xena on to the secret. "Xena, ask me any question, and I'll try to answer it for you to clear it all up." Gabrielle answered.

Xena was struggling and was ticking off the events she had suspected Gabrielle of having been under the influence of the obsession. "Well this whole time you have been obsessed with me. You were so sexually aggressive and possessive of me. You stated that I was the only one for you and you were so eager to play along with my scheming suggestion of marriage. Gabrielle, you have not been yourself these past candle marks. Now you say you don't have the obsession but you are still acting in the same way. Needless to say, I'm confused, and that does not happen quite often." Xena replied exasperated.

Gabrielle smiled sheepishly, "Well you see it's like this. Since I've known you there always has been something about you. You are beautiful, amazing, strong, and honorable. You've been a great best friend. Somewhere a long the line, actually early along the line, I realized I loved you." Gabrielle paused, almost as if to fortify herself for the revelation ahead.

"Gabrielle you know I love you too." Xena reciprocated but was hushed by Gabrielle's two lifted hands urging her to wait for her to finish.

"Further along the way, I started to be attracted to you. I mean, Xena, your body could inspire my voice into hiding and my breath from lungs. So the truth is, the way I act normally is only a repression and restraint. In the back of my mind I know I am in love with you and attracted to you, but what we have is great, so I was always able to handle those feelings. The obsession, however took my inhibitions away and exposed my real feelings exponentially." Gabrielle blushed.

Xena's jaw dropped and all she could do was stare in shock. She recovered and asked, "So what and when, did you acknowledge what you needed, to break the spell?"

"The thing that always bothered me and that I hadn't acknowledged was my desire to tell you of my attraction and make us more than just friends. So, when I had asked you if you would marry me, the obsession was slowly wearing off because I had made the step towards changing our relationship." Gabrielle explained.

"Why didn't that kiss that you surprised me with, while playing possum break the spell?" Xena questioned.

"Because what I want from you is not just physical, I want us to be together forever. The spell was broken when you said that it 'wasn't that you didn't want to marry me.' Then and there, I knew you wanted what I wanted. To be best friends, lovers, and to be together forever! The obsession was completely gone and I was ecstatic. I want to touch you, be close to you, and make love to you. I hope you feel that way too." Gabrielle relayed.

Xena couldn't believe what she was hearing. She stood in thoughtful resignation. She was not put off by the idea, but she wasn't ecstatic as well. She loved Gabrielle and always felt they were soul mates. The truth of the matter was she never really considered a physical aspect of their relationship. In actuality however, her repression of her attraction and feelings were so disciplined that she completely denied it from her thoughts. She wanted to protect Gabrielle from any frightening side of her. Her body was the only part of her that would acknowledge it, despite her minds dismissal of it. She made a mental effort to consider it. 'I enjoy being close to her, and touching her to have a reminder that she is still there.' Xena thought. Having that contact was great. She felt content and happy, but was it like the attraction she had for Marcus or other men? Xena wondered.

Xena knew that what she had with Gabrielle was much more than what she had with Marcus. If Marcus were alive today, she would choose a life with Gabrielle over Marcus in any scenario. 'Sorry Marcus," she thought in apology to Marcus. The question was did she want to make love to Gabrielle. She let out a deep sigh. She wasn't sure.

Gabrielle who had seemed to sense Xena's confusion and reluctance, tried to coax her through her feelings. "Xena, I'm going to do something to help you make up your mind. You don't have a problem with the idea of marrying me. Like it or not, there is a subconscious desire with that. I want to help you see that. I think you are trying to protect me from you." Gabrielle began.

I'm going to try something. I want you to promise you won't stop me, turn away, or stop whatever your instincts and body want to do." Gabrielle pleaded.

Xena nodded her head in acceptance.

"Attus, I need you to find bananas." Gabrielle told Joxer. Joxer grunted in understanding and he set off to find bananas.

"Gabrielle, I don't think there are bananas in this area." Xena noted. "Perfect," Gabrielle responded.

**Author's Note: Final chapter is coming up, I promise! The more reviews I get, the faster I will upload it. I'm holding it hostage (i'm kidding XD)-ideasofmany***


	8. Chapter 8

Warning: It'll get a tiny bit raunchy between Xena and Gabrielle on this one, so if you don't like it, click away now! lol

Chapter 8: Breaking through defenses

Gabrielle moved one step away from Xena. "Ready?" she asked.

"Yes," Xena said despite being afraid of what Gabrielle had planned.

Gabrielle instructed, "Remember your promise, don't hold back. We'll just test if you are attracted to me."

Xena relaxed. "Sounds like a logical test." Xena admitted as she began inspecting and observing Gabrielle head to toe in a no nonsense manner. When she returned to look at Gabrielle's face, she found she was caught in a stare.

Gabrielle looked longingly into Xena's eyes. Her eyes were demanding eye contact. She couldn't believe she was doing this, but she needed to help Xena determine if she was attracted to her and she wasn't about to make it easy for Xena to dismiss her. Slowly and silently Gabrielle lifted her hand to her own face and languidly traced her skin with her finger tips. They trailed painfully and seductively slow, down to her chin, her neck, and to the crest of her right breast. Raising tiny hairs and goosebumps in its wake.

Xena looked on in anticipation, her heart rate started racing. She started to calm herself and remembered her promise to let her body take over.

Gabrielle's eyes and head rolled back in pleasure of the sensation. She used both hands to unlace her top in a teasing seductive manner. Halfway unlaced, she opened her palm and slowly caressed one of her breasts. She softly clutched and released, presenting the flesh in an exposed and flattering manner. She commenced rubbing them in a circular ministrations. Her nipples began to harden and goose-flesh littered her exposed skin. Her other hand began the same circular caress over her taut abdominals.

Xena's breath began to shorten. Listening, she realized Gabrielle's breaths shortening in tandem. Xena's body was thrumming and she could hear the blood rushing through in her ears. Her skin began to sweat in nervousness of what was occurring in front of her.

Gabrielle's eyelids closed, lost in the sensations of her self manipulation.

Goose-bumps soon appeared on Xena's own skin. Her fingers, she found, were itching to touch Gabrielle. A tingling overtook Xena's body, as if she were in a severe chill, and an all too familiar ache appeared. A tickling sensation in her abdomen accompanied the ache. She swallowed, for she found her mouth watering uncontrollably.

Suddenly Xena realized why she had often been in a state of arousal in their travels despite never running into anyone. If she felt this way just unabashedly watching Gabrielle, she couldn't even fathom how amazing it would feel if she herself were doing the touching. For that matter, if Gabrielle were to touch her in that manner.

"Stop." Xena whispered huskily.

Gabrielle, unaware of the sensations that Xena had undergone, immediately felt the pang of rejection and was shocked out of her lustful reverie. 'Wow she didn't let me get too far, I guess I was wrong.' she thought. Embarrassed and afraid to look at Xena, Gabrielle dropped her hands and turned to lace her top. "I'm sorry Xena, I understand." she let the word tumble out slowly and timidly.

Xena, enthusiastic to clear up the misunderstanding, closed the gap between them and proceeded to plant demanding kisses and sucks onto an unsuspecting bard's neck from behind her.

"Oh gods." Gabrielle exclaimed in heated arousal as Xena's hands assumed the ministrations that Gabrielle's hands had traveled just moments before.

"I said stop because I want you to let me do the touching." Xena breathlessly revealed.

Between her caresses and skillful touches, she turned Gabrielle to face her. Not surprisingly, she had an intense desire to kiss Gabrielle. She reached her hand to caress her cheek and pulled her in for a passion filled kiss. Gabrielle's lips were soft and full and her breath was sweet. She could feel the intensity of desire increase as their breath and tongues intermingled in mutual admiration.

Xena moaned and then whispered, "You were right! Let's get married!"

However, planning the ceremony and its logistics were the last thing on either of their minds.

[CUE FADE OUT]

Candle marks later, Xena and Gabrielle are lying side by side in utter relaxation on their bed rolls. Heads touching. Holding hands.

"Yep. It definitely looks like a fish. But which one's the North Star?" Gabrielle asked.

"The big one." Xena responded.

"It's a good thing that you got that diamond back in the sky." Gabrielle stated.

"I couldn't have done it without you. The only reason I do any good at all in this world is because I do it with you." Xena reminded.

In the background of the forest they could hear Joxer yelling, "Oh! Ah! Oh! Oh! Oh! Uh! Oh!"

"I think you still need to do something about Joxer." Gabrielle chuckled.

"Tomorrow..." Xena chuckled and turned to Gabrielle, to steal a kiss. She grinned and raised her brow up and down in a suggestive manner and added, "or maybe next month."

Gabrielle lifted their joined hands and kissed Xena's hand lovingly. "Yeah, maybe next month." Gabrielle agreed as she turned to Xena and dipped in for another profound kiss.

THE END

**Author's note: Hope it wasn't too crappy. Feel free to tell me if it was, and I might fix it. Also if you think I should fill in the [FADE OUT] scene *giggles* shoot me a message or leave it in the reviews and I'll fill it in. Thanks for reading! - ideasofmany"


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